Dutch Artist and Designer Mariska Meijers

Chrisanthemum and Pink Ikat, oil on canvas 40x40cm

I'm excited to share with you a very brave and talented Dutch artist and designer named Mariska Meijers. I call her brave because up until a few years ago Mariska was a corporate attorney! That's right, with no formal training, education or experiences in art or design she took the leap of faith to fulfill her passions, something that should serve as inspiration to all of us.

I am convinced that if one does not do what they love in life, they can never be truly happy or fulfilled! I believe you reach your greatest potential by being true to yourself and your passions. For this reason I admire and respect Mariska, her achievements show that it is never too late to change your mind about how to live your life and it's certainly not impossible to do a squealing u-turn and go in another direction. As long as it is for something that moves you, inspires you, makes you happy and brings out the best of who you are and what you are capable of - go for it!

Moving on.... Artist and Designer Mariska Meijers creates vibrant colorful paintings, depictions of interior spaces including re-imaginings of her very own interior decor. I can relate to this as I often have drawn out rooms in my apartment in other ways I would design them! Her paintings range from watercolor on paper to oil on canvas and her subject matter is predominately eclectic still life interiors. I love her bold use of color, her way of shading with water color paint and most of all, her various patterns and designs of the Ikat nature!

In addition to selling her artwork, Mariska Meijers launched her own stationary line in 2008 and has converted many of her paintings into designer pillows, the first of which launched in May of 2009. For more information about Dutch Artist and Designer Mariska Meijers, and to purchase her artwork and products visit the following sites:

MariskaMeijers.com
I Used To Be Snow White But I Drifted (her blog)

Mariska Meijers Web Store

Mariska Meijers is a beautiful and inspirational artist and I am looking forward to meeting her tomorrow, yes tomorrow Saturday July 31, 2010! Mariska Meijers will be having an exhibition for her artwork at the Design Within Reach studio in Coral Gables, Miami, Florida on Miracle Mile. After working in the design industry for a couple years now I have been to the DWR showroom a few times and so I will definitely be there! Did I mention this was Mariska's first U.S. exhibition!? It is! Exciting! Anyway, if you live in or around Miami and would like to attend the art show and reception please R.S.V.P. by visiting the Design Within Reach event website here:

Mariska Meijers at DWR South Florida Studios
Art show and reception: July 31, 2010, 5-8 pm
Art exhibition: July 11 to August 9, 2010

or

View the Facebook event page here!

"I don't believe in minimalism. There are no rules when it comes to mixing styles and colours. A house should give you a happy and warm feeling. With this in mind I create my art and my products."

- Mariska Meijers

Interior with Union Jack, watercolor and ink, 20x20cm

Flamingo Flowers and Pink Ikat, oil on canvas, 40x50cm

Desk, watercolor and ink on paper, 20x20cm

(Images courtesy of Mariska Meijers and should not be used without her permission)

The new look...

Maybe you've noticed that I finally added an image behind the title of my blog. I wanted an original image so I created a collage from several favorite pictures from my travels. I was impatient so this is just the first version, there are many more to come and I hope they'll get better as I make more and more!

The images are as follows (from left to right):
1. Distant view of The Blue Mosque in Istanbul, Turkey

2. International city distance/direction sign at the cheese farm we visited in Volendam, The Netherlands

3. A picture looking down on my feet, standing on the beautiful marble floor of Hagia Sophia in Istanbul, Turkey

4. By far, one of my favorite and most prized black and white photographs from my trip to Istanbul, Turkey in 2008 of a couple in the bohemian district (I call them The Bohemian Lovers, hehe)... they were lounging on the floor against a roll up warehouse door with a guitar and he was kissing her and laying on her lap. Love it! Classic photograph. I should win an award for this one, if I may say so myself! :)

5. And last but not least, a photograph of the backside of a windmill at a windmill farm in Volendam, The Netherlands

I'm back!

(tulip planters in front of Schiphol Airport in Amsterdam, The Netherlands)

Helllooooo world! This is just a quick post to let you all know that I'm back from Europe!!! Though it has almost been a week, I am still suffering from that damned jet lag, so as you can imagine blogging has been the last thing on my list of things that require time, thought and energy. :(

I am really looking forward to the weekend so I can get working on the several posts I have planned for highlighting the best parts of my trip. What a trip, believe me when I tell you that I have a lot to share with you, evidenced by the nearly 2,000 pictures that I took (*gasp* yes, I know what you must be thinking... but I could have easily taken 4,000!) ... Oh how I love the iPhone, hehe, stay tuned! I hope you're all doing well.... ;)

(windmills in the town of Volendam, The Netherlands)

(the Arc de Triomphe in Paris, France)

(in all of its glory... the Eiffel Tower on a horribly rainy cold day in Paris, France)

Travel day is almost here!!

I am so excited, tomorrow I leave with my mom for The Netherlands to meet up with my aunt and a close family friend for nine days of adventure in Amsterdam and Paris! We will be leaving tomorrow afternoon and arriving around 7:30am Friday morning in Amsterdam, we will stay there until Monday then catch an early morning train to Paris, stay in Paris until Wednesday and then return to stay in Amsterdam until Saturday May 15th. WOOOOOOOHOOOOO!!! (that's what every nerve ending in my body is screaming).... Tomorrow can't come soon enough!

I'm really looking forward to spending more time in these two cities since in the past I was only able to explore them briefly.... Oh, and I never got to visit the Louvre and go up in the Eiffel Tower while in Paris because the Louvre was closed (it was a Wednesday and apparently they are only closed Wednesdays - what luck huh!?) and there wasn't enough time to trek up the tower for a look-see. So, I'll definitely be doing all of those things this time around!! And, like I said before, I'm particularly excited for my mother because it will be her first time visiting these two cities and she has not been in Europe for over 20 years! This is sure to be fun, my already giddy excitement about traveling and revisiting Europe is sure to be heightened further through my mom's enjoyment!

I will definitely miss my man, but he will survive without me (though I'm afraid he might gobble every last bit of food in the apartment out of boredom!! LOL). Also, I will have to leave detailed instructions for him on how to care for my army of plants!!! HAHA...

Anyway, I have so much to do before take-off time.... Packing is a nightmare for me because I don't like planning my outfits in advance and to make matters worse I have way too much clothes, purses and shoes to choose from! I am so anxious to get home from work today!!!

Have a wonderful day everyone, I'll do my best to post pictures and do brief posts while on my vacation... that is, whenever I am able to connect to a WiFi network!

~Catherine
xoxo

(All images found via Google image search on Amsterdam)

Travel Update!!!

As I mentioned in my post from a few days ago, on May 6th I will be traveling to The Netherlands with my mother and my aunt to stay in Amsterdam for eight days!! BUT, it just got better... during our trip we'll be taking a train to Paris for a two day stay!! The last time I was in Paris I was 15, it was only for a few hours (we were on a Mediterranean cruise) which we spent running around Paris on the subway and by foot trying to see all the famous landmarks.... AND, the Louvre Museum was CLOSED... *GASP* Anyway, I am very happy to be visiting France again as an adult, it's sure to be a wonderful *two days in Paris* :)

Also, a long time friend of both my mother and aunt's from high school has just decided to join us, increasing ours to a party of FOUR! Woohoo! The more the merrier!

Stay tuned for the massive onslaught of photos that will ensue when we return on May 16th!!!

Amsterdam here I come! Sooner rather than later..... wheee...

Oh yes, it's true! In less than three weeks I'll be hitchin' a plane to The Netherlands for over a week of fun in Amsterdam, woohoo!! I didn't think I'd be going back to Europe again so soon, as it is I was lucky enough to go to Istanbul, Turkey in May of 2008 for business (and a few layover hours roaming Amsterdam too), yet for some reason the travel gods have shined down on me again in the form of a very loving mother!! And although I'd love for my boyfriend to enjoy this trip with me, but he can't take time off from work and this vacation just so happens to be a girls only adventure! (My aunt will be in Germany on business in the next few weeks and will be meeting my mom and I in Amsterdam on May 7th.)


Although I've been to Amsterdam four times before (albeit very briefly) and I've visited Anne Frank's house, walked through the Red Light District and strolled the Van Gogh museum, there's still so much that I want to see and do! I'm particularly excited for my mom, it has been many years since she last visited Europe and up until this point, I've done all of my world traveling with my aunt, so I'm looking forward to the added company, it's sure to be a lot of fun... Also in the realm of possibilities? A day (or two) trip to Paris.... another city that I didn't get to thoroughly explore, particularly given the Louvre was closed while I was there!

Anyway, May 6th is just around the corner, it's time to get planning and packing!! I can't wait!

Windmills and tulips and coffee shops oh my.............